finding the right place to stay

I love planning trips and spend much of my free time doing so. As is the case for many of us with busy working lives (and limited leisure time), only some of these vacations will come to fruition. But I still enjoy the planning and the research. In my search I specifically, try to find places that have some unique combination of character, modern design, luxury and history – without being stuffy or outrageously expensive.

We have stayed in some of these properties, others we plan to stay in soon, and yet more are simply places which I'm keeping on my radar for future itineraries.

If we have stayed in a hotel, it will be so noted (*the itinerant stayed here). Other properties have been vetted across a number of both mainstream and upscale travel websites and publications (online, magazines, and books). While we have enough confidence in these properties to include them here, we do not claim to have visited any hotels other than the ones noted. This site is purely informational.